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Adobe Sys. Inc. v. Hoops Enter. LLC

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
Jan 4, 2012
No. C 10-2769 CW (N.D. Cal. Jan. 4, 2012)

Opinion

No. C 10-2769 CW

01-04-2012

ADOBE SYSTEMS INCORPORATED, Plaintiff, v. HOOPS ENTERPRISE LLC; and ANTHONY KORNRUMPF, Defendants. AND ALL RELATED CLAIMS


ORDER GRANTING MOTION TO FILE UNDER SEAL (Docket No. 145)

Defendants and Counter-claimants Hoops Enterprise LLC and Anthony Kornrumpf seek to file under seal Exhibit B to their Opposition to Plaintiff Adobe Systems Incorporated's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment.

In their declaration in support of their motion, Defendants represent that Exhibit B is a settlement agreement that the parties had executed to settle prior litigation between them and state, "As part of the terms of the settlement agreement, the parties agreed to keep the settlement confidential." Boyce Decl. ¶ 4.

Plaintiff has also filed a declaration in support of Defendants' motion. In the declaration, Plaintiff states, "The Document is sealable because it contains privileged and sensitive contract terms and language that was negotiated between the Parties in connection with settlement of a previous litigation. Information included in the Document is not otherwise known publicly and may be different than settlements achieved in other Adobe litigation." Coombs Decl. ¶ 3.

Defendants' filing is connected to a dispositive motion. To do establish that the document is sealable, the parties "must overcome a strong presumption of access by showing that 'compelling reasons supported by specific factual findings . . . outweigh the general history of access and the public policies favoring disclosure.'" Pintos v. Pac. Creditors Ass'n, 605 F.3d 665, 679 (9th Cir. 2010) (citation omitted). This cannot be established simply by showing that the document is subject to a protective order or by stating in general terms that the material is considered to be confidential, but rather must be supported by a sworn declaration demonstrating with particularity the need to file each document under seal. Civil Local Rule 79-5(a).

Review of the settlement agreement and the parties' declarations makes clear that the document reveals information that would not otherwise be known or available to the public and that filing under seal is necessary to preserve the confidentiality to which the parties assented as part of their agreement to settle the earlier action. Thus, the Court finds that the parties have established that the settlement agreement is sealable. See Phillips v. GMC, 307 F.3d 1206, 1212 (9th Cir. 2002) (noting that "courts have granted protective orders to protect confidential settlement agreements"); Prosurance Group, Inc. v. Liberty Mut. Group, Inc., 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 22365, at *3-4 (N.D. Cal.) (granting motion to seal to protect confidentiality of terms of a settlement agreement).

Accordingly, Defendants' motion to file under seal is GRANTED (Docket No. 145). Within four days of the date of this Order, Defendants shall file under seal Exhibit B to their Opposition.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

_______________

CLAUDIA WILKEN

United States District Judge


Summaries of

Adobe Sys. Inc. v. Hoops Enter. LLC

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
Jan 4, 2012
No. C 10-2769 CW (N.D. Cal. Jan. 4, 2012)
Case details for

Adobe Sys. Inc. v. Hoops Enter. LLC

Case Details

Full title:ADOBE SYSTEMS INCORPORATED, Plaintiff, v. HOOPS ENTERPRISE LLC; and…

Court:UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

Date published: Jan 4, 2012

Citations

No. C 10-2769 CW (N.D. Cal. Jan. 4, 2012)